US grounds all departing flights due to a communications outage

The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground stop for all planes due to take off across the United States, which resulted in thousands of delayed and canceled flights at airports nationwide. The sweeping halt to departures and landing delays began at approximately 4pm ET on Friday. According to the FAA, the disruption was triggered by a temporary telecommunications outage. Officials stated that every flight has been accounted for and that international flights are being managed on a case-by-case basis.